Monday, January 25, 2010

"Two of the long straightaways have relatively slow corners leading onto them. There are some good 90-degree turns at the end of the straights, and on one occasion a little tighter than that.

It's a track that's challenging but can create some exciting racing and will provide a challenge for the teams deciding on their downforce levels for both qualifying and the race. Less downforce generally means less grip. Combine that with the longest straightaway of any track in the IZOD IndyCar Series and overtaking should be exciting. It should be a spectacular sight for the fans at Turn 11 watching the cars braking from about 185 mph to 50 mph as they enter the Sambodromo.

Running through the middle of the stadium that hosts Carnival, which holds about 30,000 people, I think will be an electric atmosphere for the drivers. That portion of the track through the stadium is concrete and everywhere else will be asphalt, so there will be some surface changes. That's always good for the racing. From the grandstand perspective, how could you have run around it or not use it?"

With long straightaways, it's certainly going to be fast and you definitely will have challenges. No question it will be a good race and the people are so excited to have Formula Indy come to Brazil."

Everybody we're working with is incredibly motivated to showcase the event. I'm sure there will be some fine-tuning in the future, but to be perfectly honest it's no different than going to any of the temporary circuits where we currently race. It will be fast. It will be fun. It will be exciting. It will be safe. Most importantly, from a fan's perspective, they'll see a lot of action." -Tony Cottman